Tag Archives: Pernicious anemia

Vitamin B12 Deficiency Symptoms cannot be ignored! If you have any of the most common symptoms- fatigue, depression, memory loss, painful “pins and needles” in the hands and feet- then you’re in for a shock. There’s a lot more to vitamin B12 deficiency than you may realize.

Vitamin B12 Deficiency Symptoms

Vitamin B12 is essential for so many primary biological functions that are necessary for survival- your nervous system, hormonal balance, cognitive functioning, metabolism, cell formation, to name just a few. It’s no wonder that when vitamin B12 levels are even marginally low, the results can range from annoying and disturbing to debilitating and catastrophic.

Pernicious anemia

In years past, pernicious anemia from severe vitamin B12 deficiency used to be fatal. Today, thanks to vitamin B12 supplementation, we are able to maintain normal levels of vitamin B12, even in spite of vitamin B12 malabsorption from autoimmune disorders and gastrointestinal illnesses.

But until you learn to recognize the earliest symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency, you’re at risk for pernicious anemia and all the damage that it can cause throughout your system.

Symptoms of low B12

Here are 99 ailments that often occur in people with moderate to severe vitamin B12 deficiency, including comorbid conditions and direct symptoms.

Vitamin B12 deficiency treatment methods vary according the severity of your symptoms, which country you live in, and what your healthcare provider allows.

Vitamin B12 deficiency treatment overview

How much vitamin B12 should I take?

The only way to treat vitamin B12 deficiency and reverse debilitating symptoms is to replenish vitamin B12 immediately. Taking B12 pills is not enough, as most people who suffer from this deficiency are not able to digest vitamin B12 from food or dietary supplements, due to a lack of intrinsic factor.

The standard dose for treatment is 1,000mic of cobalamin, to be taken according to your doctor’s recommendation. How much vitamin B12 you receive depends largely on your physician’s prescription and your willingness to purchase extra vitamin B12 supplements from your own pocket, outside your healthcare providers’ budget.

To give you an idea of the basic regimen for vitamin B12 deficiency treatment, consider this report by the PAS (UK-based):

“The results of our Survey of members showed that Of those individuals receiving B12 by injection, less than 1% were being treated more than once a day, 1% were being treated daily, 2% weekly, 9% monthly, 15% two-monthly, 50% three-monthly and 10% were being treated at some ‘other’ frequency. 10% of our members use a form of B12- Methylcobalamin – which is not licensed for use in Europe or North America.”

Vitamin B12 deficiency is anemia

Vitamin B12 deficiency is a worldwide epidemic that can lead to pernicious anemia, a condition that was once lethal but it still disabling to this day.Symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency in the earliest stages can include chronic fatigue, memory problems, depression, and painful numbness and tingling in the extremities. Untreated, as vitamin B12 levels plummet, symptoms worsen- an indication of a gradual breakdown in the nervous system, as evidenced in peripheral neuropathy.

Diagnosing vitamin B12 deficiency

A standard blood test can detect if your vitamin B12 levels are dangerously low. However, it may not warn you when vitamin B12 levels are dipping from a low to medium range, as the tests only serve to pick up potentially lethal cases of pernicious anemia.

According to the Pernicious Anaemia Society (PAS), nearly 44% of people with vitamin B12 deficiency are initially and wrongfully diagnosed with a different condition. About 22% suffer from their symptoms for two years before they ever get treatment for vitamin B12 deficiency.

This is unacceptable- if doctors would only pay more attention to the underlying symptoms, then their patients would be able to get their treatment immediately and cheaply.

Which types of vitamin B12 are the best?

The best kind of vitamin B12 to take is the kind that enters directly into your bloodstream and results in complete relief and recovery from your symptoms. Your doctor will prescribe vitamin B12 shots, but to reverse the symptoms, you may have to purchase more vitamin B12 online in order to top off your B12 levels.

Upshot- Don’t take chances with vitamin B12 deficiency. If your doctor doesn’t approve the amount of vitamin B12 that you need to restore energy and relieve pain symptoms, then it’s absolutely crucial that your take matters into your own hands.

So, you think you’re getting enough vitamin B12 in one day? If you’re one of many who suffer from vitamin B12 malabsorption, then you need upwards from 1000 micrograms of B12 each week. Sounds easy? Guess again.

Vitamin B12 deficiency epidemic

Vitamin B12 occurs only in animal-based foods such as beef, chicken, fish, and dairy products like cheese and eggs. If you’re a vegan, then it’s time to start taking vitamin B12 supplements, in order to prevent vitamin B12 deficiency, a condition that back in the 20s was a fatal disease known as pernicious anemia.

Scary stuff.

These days, vitamin B12 deficiency is still epidemic, though not as pernicious as it used to be. Still, many people are at risk for permanent nerve damage resulting from long-term vitamin B12 deficiency, so it’s a good idea to make sure you’re getting enough into your blood supply.

The reason for the epidemic is simple– these days, there exist more factors that lead to vitamin B12 malabsorption than ever before. Your ability to digest and use vitamin B12 from foods diminishes exponentially with each risk factor.

B12 deficiency risk factors include:

Family history for pernicious anemia

Family history for autoimmune disease

Gastritis or other damage to the stomach

Gastrointestinal illnesses such as Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis or GERD

Lupus

Fibromyalgia

Alcoholism

Bariatric surgery, such as gastric bypass

Vegan dieting

Migraine

Medications for diabetes, acid reflux, depression, and birth control

Foods with vitamin B12

If you’re not able to digest vitamin B12 from foods, then doctors recommend anywhere between 1000 to 3000 micrograms of vitamin B12 each week in order to prevent deficiency and start feeling better.

How much is that? Our infographic gives you an idea- to get just 1000 micrograms of vitamin B12, you would have to eat 11 servings of clam chowder…14 plates of fried liver with onions…or 17 sushi rolls of fish eggs.

Though beef is touted as one of the best sources of vitamin B12, you would actually need to eat 80 servings of beefsteak to get even close to the amount of vitamin B12 you would need to get your B12 levels back to normal.

That’s why it’s so important to take your vitamin B12 supplements, if you are experiencing even mild to medium symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency.

Your life and your health depend on it. Take as much vitamin B12 as you feel that you need until symptoms of tiredness, sadness, sluggishness, and memory problems disappear.

There is no danger of overdose with vitamin B12, so it’s perfectly safe to take more than you think you’ll need, to be on the safe side.

Preventing anemia during pregnancy means more than just checking your iron levels. Vitamin B12 deficiency anemia can cause many problems that can harm your baby, yet it’s often brushed under the rug. In fact, vitamin B12 blood testing doesn’t always detect the earliest signs of vitamin B12 anemia during pregnancy, or afterwards.

Family planning with vitamin B12 in mind.

Vitamin B12 is so important for so many stages of life- it helps your make plenty of healthy red blood cells needed for oxygen. Vitamin B12 also protects your nervous system. This important plant-based vitamin is excellent for metabolism, energy, memory, and good mood.

For family planning, vitamin B12 is crucial for fertility, development, and your child’s ability to thrive.

According to studies, women with vitamin B12 deficiency or pernicious anemia are more likely than others to experience infertility, multiple miscarriages, and spontaneous abortions.

Fertility

Among the many symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency include problems that can interfere with family planning. Difficulty conceiving, low libido, impotence, and miscarriage are all impairments that occur with pernicious anemia or medium-range vitamin B12 deficiency.

Miscarriages

If you have too much homocysteine, then you are at risk for preeclampsia and miscarriage. Vitamin B12 helps to control homocysteine, so it’s important to keep taking your vitamin B12 supplements.

To prevent blood clotting, you should also keep folate levels in check, as well.

Neural tube defects

In a study by the National Institutes of Health, doctors saw that neural tube birth defects happen more often when the mother has vitamin B12 deficiency or pernicious anemia.

Even before getting pregnant, you should start taking extra vitamin B12.

Spina bifida, a development disorder that means “split spine,” is five times more likely to occur with pernicious anemia, even if couples are anemic before conceiving.

Prevent anemia during pregnancy

Vitamin B12 deficiency is treatable- and the symptoms can be prevented if caught on time. That means good health, both for you and your unborn child, when vitamin B12 anemia is detected before or during pregnancy.

Researchers noted that when vitamin B12 supplements are introduced in high doses, homocysteine levels decrease, resulting in a much better outcome for normal childbirth.

While there’s no upper limit for vitamin B12 (all amounts are perfectly safe), the standard dose is 1,000mic taken daily, weekly, bi-weekly, or as recommended by your physician.

If you had vitamin B12 deficiency anemia during pregnancy, did you take extra vitamin B12, in addition to your prenatal vitamins?

Peripheral neuropathy is caused by damage to the nerves outside of the central nervous system. Autoimmune disorder is one of many conditions linked to peripheral neuropathy, resulting in chronic neuropathic pain, reduced mobility, and organ failure.

The peripheral nervous system

The peripheral nervous system connects the central nervous system (spinal cord and brain) to the rest of your body. Everything you touch, taste, smell, and see is filtered through your peripheral nerves. Even your controlled breathing, heart rate, and digestive functions are dependent on having a healthy peripheral nervous system.

With impaired peripheral nerve cells, you may suffer any of a number of debilitating painful ailments. Diabetes, pernicious anemia from vitamin B12 deficiency, and alcoholism are a few examples of conditions that cause severe peripheral neuropathy. If treated in time, nerve damage can be minimized or prevented altogether.

Nerve damage is often preventable and treatable, only if caught on time.

What causes peripheral neuropathy?

Listed are some illnesses, lifestyle factors, and medical treatments that are risk factors for peripheral neuropathy.
Autoimmune disorders

If you have a history for immune system dysfunction, then your chances of developing neuropathy are higher than others. Intrinsic factor antibody disorder is one such example that occurs when your immune system continuously attacks intrinsic factor, a necessary enzyme for digesting vitamin B12.

Vitamin B12 is absolutely crucial for protecting the nervous system, as it helps to promote production of myelin, an insulating substance that protects each individual nerve cell. Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an illness that breaks down myelin and causes peripheral neuropathy- many doctors believe there is a link between long-term vitamin B12 anemia and MS.

Tip: If you have a family history for autoimmune disorder, then get tested for serum vitamin B12 regularly, and learn how to recognize the symptoms and causes of peripheral neuropathy.

Illnesses

Other illnesses and conditions that may cause peripheral neuropathy are:

Diabetes

Bell’s palsy

Kidney failure

Liver failure

Rheumatoid arthritis

Hepatitis B

Lifestyle choices

Alcoholism, smoking cigarettes, and sedentariness can also lead to peripheral neuropathy just by increasing your odds for cancer, organ dysfunction, and diabetes.

If you follow a vegan diet, then it’s essential to supplement with daily vitamin B12, in order to prevent peripheral neuropathy caused by vitamin B12 deficiency.

Medicine and surgery

Certain medications indirectly cause peripheral neuropathy by making you a high risk factor for vitamin B12 anemia. If you have been taking any prescription medication for several months, then ask your doctor to list all possible side effects that can occur over a long period of time.

If you have elected for gastrointestinal surgery, either for treatment of Crohn’s or for weight loss (gastric bypass), then it’s vitally important to take highly-digestible forms of vitamin B12 in order to prevent peripheral neuropathy.

Cancer treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation treatments often result in peripheral nerve damage.

Sometimes, during surgery, a doctor may accidentally strike a nerve, causing nerve damage that can be difficult to treat later.

Pernicious anemia (PA) is a condition that occurs with vitamin B12 deficiency. Getting help for pernicious anemia requires intense supplementation of vitamin B12, in addition to treatment of any underlying causes that may interfere with your ability to absorb vitamin B12 from foods.

What is Pernicious Anemia?

Pernicious anemia is a condition that can occur as a result of an autoimmune dysfunction or gastritis (damage to the parietal cells of the stomach). With pernicious anemia, your body is unable to digest satisfactory amounts of vitamin B12 from foods such as beef, chicken, fish, or dairy products. As a result, you begin to suffer the ill effects of severe vitamin B12 deficiency.

One of the most devastating signs of pernicious anemia is your body’s inability to produce enough healthy, functional red blood cells, which are needed to deliver oxygen to your brain, organs, and tissues. Many of the ailments you experience with pernicious anemia (brain fog, fatigue, memory problems) are a natural result of insufficient oxygen in your blood supply.

Getting Help for Pernicious Anemia

First, visit your doctor regularly for blood tests, vitamin B12 supplements, and check-ups. Outside of your doctor’s office, getting help for pernicious anemia can be as simple as spending a few hours on the internet combing the various websites that provide the most up-to-date medical publications and advice for vitamin B12 deficiency and pernicious anemia.

Pernicious Anemia Support Groups

There are few support groups available for pernicious anemia- perhaps because it is no longer deemed a life-threatening illness, thanks to the modern invention of vitamin B12 supplementation. Listed are a few advocacy groups online that provide helpful information about pernicious anemia.

Pernicious Anemia on Facebook

Facebook has many advocacy and support group pages for pernicious anemia that can also be wonderful resources. Some of these groups are closed, so you will have to ask the administrator permission to join.

Read more about Pernicious Anemia

Pernicious Anemia Symptoms

Vitamin B12 deficiency blood testing is just one way of diagnosing pernicious anemia- and it’s not really the most accurate indicator, as the blood tests are designed only to catch lethally-low levels of vitamin B12, not medium-low levels that can still cause debilitating symptoms, such as nerve damage, memory loss, and immobility.

The best gauge for measuring vitamin B12 levels is the existence of symptoms that correlate strongly with pernicious anemia. That’s why it’s vitally important to recognize the signs and inform your doctor should they appear.

Typical symptoms of pernicious anemia include:

Constant fatigue

Long-time depression

Short-term memory loss

Slow speaking

Painful numbness and tingling in the hands and feet

Anxiety

Brain fog (confusion)

Poor attention levels

Poor problem-solving

Headaches

Muscle spasms

Partial paralysis

Weakness

Poor motor skills coordination

Poor balance

Electric shock sensations in the neck

We’d love your opinion!

Can you add to our list of support groups or advocacy associations that offer help for pernicious anemia?

If you suffer from pernicious anemia or vitamin B12 deficiency, have you found this helpful?

What is your favorite method for supplementing vitamin B12- injections or alternative forms of vitamin B12 that dissolve into the bloodstream?

Experiencing an energy crisis? You may just need more vitamin B12. Fatigue, muscle weakness, and mental brain fog are all symptoms of a hidden vitamin B12 deficiency, which can be easily treated with regular supplementation of vitamin B12 (cobalamin).

Untreated, vitamin B12 deficiency can worsen, resulting in severe pernicious anemia, causing irreversible nerve damage. To catch it early, it’s important to recognize the symptoms, such as loss of energy, difficulty thinking straight, and arms or legs always “falling asleep.”

Vitamin B12 deficiency is epidemic

It’s normal to get the blah’s every now and then, but if it seems like your life has been one endless cycle of tiredness, depression, and allover yucky feelings, then you may be a candidate for vitamin B12 deficiency. In fact, vitamin B12 anemia often slips past the radar, as people often assume that if they eat healthy, then they are immune to vitamin deficiency.

Not so- read more to learn why.

Signs of Vitamin B12 deficiency

When your vitamin B12 levels dip to an unhealthy low, you may experience some of the following telltale symptoms- many of which can be misdiagnosed as chronic depression, adrenaline disorders, or multiple sclerosis (MS).

Signs of vitamin B12 deficiency include:

Constant overbearing tiredness, despite sleeping well

Loss of mental clarity (brain fog)

Confusion

Memory problems

Dizziness

Depression

Anxiety

Paranoia

Unusual aggression

Painful tingling and numbness in the hands and feet

Weakness in the muscles

Muscle spasms and pain

Difficulty controlling arm and leg movements

Constantly dropping things

Frequent falling

How did this happen?

First, it’s important to understand that even if you eat lots of foods containing vitamin B12, such as beef, chicken, fish, eggs, and dairy products, you still run the risk of becoming deficient in this essential nutrient.

Secondly, there are a host of medical conditions that can interfere with vitamin B12 absorption– your ability to digest vitamin B12 properly from the protein foods that you do eat, and many of these medical scenarios are becoming more commonplace.

Finally, if you follow a strict vegan diet, then you will not replenish vitamin B12 stores without constant supplementation. There are no rich dietary sources of vitamin B12 that are plant-based. Zilch.

How can I boost Vitamin B12?

If you’re low in vitamin B12 despite eating healthy, then you will need to add it to your blood supply in a non-dietary form. There are many products on the market that boost energy and contain high doses of vitamin B12 without the need for painful B12 injections.

A new study on the cause of tinnitus leads sufferers to hope that vitamin B12 may be an essential key in reversing frustrating ear ringing and phantom sounds caused by noise-induced tinnitus. Here are the results of the study, which focused on damaged nerve cells of the inner ears.

Tinnitus cure on the horizon

We know that exposure to dangerously loud noise decibels is a frequent cause of tinnitus. Now, researchers from University of Leicester’s Department of Cell Physiology and Pharmacology understand more about the kind of nerve cell damage that occurs when people listen to loud music or work in a noisy environment, and how it may be treated by promoting the myelin sheath, which is supported by vitamin B12.

This is great news for people who have been suffering from chronic tinnitus for years, as there are currently no conventional drugs or treatments available to cure tinnitus symptoms.

Vitamin B12 and myelin

Your nerve cells are coated with myelin, a fatty substance that shields them from harm and enhances intercellular communication. According to this study, noise exposure may damage the myelin which surrounds the nerve cells of your cochlea (inner ear), leading to tinnitus that occurs when the dorsal cochlear nucleus sends mixed signals to the brain.

Vitamin B12 is an essential nutrient for your entire nervous system, as it helps to support continuous myelin production while also maintaining many other crucial mechanisms of your brain’s network of nerve cells.

In fact, one of the most devastating symptoms of pernicious anemia caused by vitamin B12 deficiency is a general breakdown of the nervous system due to demyelination- loss of the precious myelin layer. In addition to tinnitus, other signs of nerve damage caused by loss of myelin include immobility (loss of motor control), delayed nervous reactions, autonomous impairment (i.e. digestive problems), and cognitive problems (brain fog, memory loss).

For nerve cell health, doctors recommend vitamin B12 supplementation.

Vitamin B12 is the basis of all supplementation for nervous system integrity, as it is the best proven method to promote myelin production.

What is tinnitus?

Tinnitus is a condition that results from nerve damage of the inner ears. Symptoms include a variety of disturbing noises that are heard only by the sufferer; constant ear ringing, whooshing sounds, buzzing, clicking or whistling are just a few of the types of phantom sounds that occur with tinnitus.

In most cases, tinnitus happens as a result of acoustic overexposure to very loud noises, such as music, machinery, explosions, or constant hammering. Over time, nerve damage to the ears becomes more pronounced, leading to incessant ringing in one or both ears. Tinnitus can last more months or years, and may come and go in phases.

Help for tinnitus

If you suffer from constant tinnitus, then the first step is to boost your intake of vitamin B12 through supplementation. Even if you don’t have vitamin B12 deficiency, you may benefit greatly from the extra vitamin B12. Many people who take mega-doses of vitamin B12 regularly report feeling more energetic and mentally focused.

If you have tinnitus caused by ear damage, then continued use of vitamin B12 supplements will provide the best possible support for myelin production needed to sustain healthy nerve cells.